ASUS has confirmed the discontinuation of NVIDIA’s RTX 5070 Ti and 5060 Ti 16GB graphics card models. The company has stated these models have reached their “end of life,” a claim that differs from NVIDIA’s position that production of these cards would continue. This decision by ASUS suggests a potential strategy to reserve valuable GDDR7 memory for higher-margin graphics cards.
Both the RTX 5070 Ti and 5060 Ti utilize 16GB of 28 Gbps GDDR7 memory. This specification is quite similar to the 16GB of 30 Gbps GDDR7 found in the RTX 5080. This similarity raises questions about whether slightly modified RTX 5080 cards or upcoming SUPER versions of the RTX 50xx series might incorporate this memory. While ASUS has not explicitly stated this, consumers might appreciate greater transparency regarding such strategic decisions.
Beyond graphics card memory, the hardware market is also seeing shifts in storage pricing. Hard drive prices have reportedly increased by approximately 46% since September of the previous year. This surge is attributed to increased demand for traditional spinning drives. Although HDDs remain more affordable than solid-state drives, manufacturers appear to be capitalizing on the heightened demand to boost profit margins.
The hardware landscape continues to evolve, presenting ongoing challenges for enthusiasts.
